This commentary is by Marguerite Adelman of Winooski, coordinator of the Vermont PFAS/Military Poisons Coalition — a project of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom Earth Democracy Committee.
For the first time in over two decades, the EPA has issued new health advisories and drinking water standards pertaining to six forms of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a class of 12,000-plus manmade, bioaccumulative, persistent, non-degradable chemicals with one of the strongest bonds in chemistry.
The few PFAS that have been studied are toxic, traveling easily through air, water and soil, and can be found everywhere on the planet, including in living beings.
PFAS can lead to health problems such as liver damage, thyroid disease, weakened immune systems, obesity, fertility issues in men and women, various forms of cancer, birth defects, and disrupted normal brain development in children.
The Vermont drinking and surface water standard for PFAS is 20 parts per trillion for five forms of PFAS. The EPA has just changed its lifetime health advisory for PFOA and PFOS, two common forms of PFAS, from 70 parts per trillion to 0.004 ppt and 0.02 ppt, respectively.
One part per trillion is akin to one grain of sand in an Olympic-size swimming pool or a pinch of salt in 10 tons of potato chips.
The EPA’s new proposed drinking water standards for PFAS are 4 ppt. of PFOS, 4 ppt. of PFOA, and a formulaic hazard index for perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA, commonly known as GenX Chemicals), perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), and perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS).
The reason that the standard is higher than the health advisory is because lab tests have not been developed that reliably measure PFAS below 2 to 4 ppt. Nevertheless, the difference in the numbers demonstrates how highly toxic PFAS is in minute quantities. Currently, the EPA is hearing testimony and gathering public input on these standards.
The Vermont PFAS/Military Poisons Coalition believes that the EPA’s proposed standards are not comprehensive enough, take too long to enact, and don’t set PFOA and PFOS at the limits needed to protect people and animals from harm.
Because of the EPA’s chemical-by-chemical approach, public health and the environment are in crisis. We must regulate PFAS as a class of chemicals and ban all but absolutely essential uses of these toxins.
The EPA should do what the European Chemicals Agency did in February 2023. The agency published its proposal to ban the production and import of the family of over 10,000 persistent PFAS chemicals in the European Union. 108 European companies have committed to phasing out PFAS chemicals from products and processes and have joined in calling for comprehensive laws to deal with PFAS in the European Union.
The proposed EU ban on PFAS is extensive as opposed to the U.S. “whack a mole” approach of a few PFAS at a time. In fact, the EPA’s regulated PFAS don’t include all of the most common forms of PFAS found in drinking water. U.S. companies need to commit to phasing out PFAS, and U.S. consumers need to stop buying products with PFAS in them. Our convenience today is not worth the environmental and health havoc we are creating for future generations. Furthermore, we won’t see the law even take effect until 2025 or later.
The U.S. needs to start using the Precautionary Principle. We must move the burden of proof for potentially harmful products to industry. Before a product goes on the market, a company must prove it is safe for our health and the environment. If there is any doubt, we must err on the side of caution, not allowing the product on the market.
In addition, industry — not the public — should pay to clean up its contamination. Industry should also list all ingredients in a product, instead of hiding them in an “inert catchall category” and as “business confidential.” The public has a right to know what is in the products that they purchase and use.
Let your voice be heard in Washington. You can be sure that the chemical companies and their paid lobbyists are submitting their comments now. Click here to submit your comments on the EPA’s proposed drinking water standards. Ask the agency to ban the entire class of PFAS chemicals from our drinking water.
